


Self Improvement

by Freedom_Shamrock



Series: Improvements [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien Week, Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-14
Updated: 2016-11-14
Packaged: 2018-08-31 00:58:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,883
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8556451
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Freedom_Shamrock/pseuds/Freedom_Shamrock
Summary: After a birthday interview and photo-shoot, Adrien realizes he's going to need to expand his model expression toolkit.  And if he wants to avoid disappointing his father, he needs to do it within the next two weeks.





	

Dropping into the chair in front of his computer, Adrien let out a heavy sigh. The interview in honor of his upcoming birthday made it clear that the media were done handling him with kid gloves. He’d been expecting it, wondering when photographers would move from cute and sweet depictions of him to something a bit more mature.

Some aspects of the change didn’t bother him at all. He was pretty accustomed to his body being on display, both as a model and as a superhero (and honestly, that suit hid nothing). But other details nearly pushed him into panic mode. He wasn’t prepared to pull off the expressions his photographers were going to want, which would piss off his father. Disappointed Gabriel Agreste was something to be avoided at all costs.

Shoving his long fingers into his still damp hair, Adrien rubbed vigorously at his scalp, tugging the blond strands in his frustration. If his father hadn’t isolated him so much, he could have probably found a mentor among the many models he worked with. At this point, his coworkers were professional but cool toward him, no matter how friendly he was.

Plagg looked up from his evening snack. "What’s eating you kid?“

Adrien gave his ring a couple of twists while he tried to find the perfect words. With the right approach, the tiny black cat could be surprisingly insightful. "I’m about to age up, as far as modeling is concerned.”

“About time,” Plagg said with a snort. "All that running around as Chat Noir moved you out of the young teen hearthrob arena months ago.“

Adrien raised his eyebrows and stifled a laugh. "Really? I hadn’t noticed.” His words were heavy with sarcasm, a tone he frequently used around the cheese-loving embodiment of bad luck.

“Heh, with as far down as they made you unbutton your shirt, the rest of Paris is going to notice once those photos come out.” Plagg chuckled, then popped the rest of the Camembert in his mouth, swallowing it whole.

“Yeah. Pretty much.” Adrien crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back, more amused than he wanted to admit. If this wasn’t his life, it would be downright hilarious.

“And this is a problem how?” Plagg floated over to sit on top of the center monitor.

They’d reached the crux of the issue. "I’ve sat in on enough shoots to know the kinds of expressions photographers are going to start asking me for, and…" He hesitated, shrugging. "I have no idea how to do longing or desire.“ He shrugged again. "What do those even look like on my face? Are they really expressions anyone should see?” He’d been doing this long enough to know there was a difference between real emotions and marketing-labeled emotions.

Plagg rubbed at his chin with a tiny paw. "Seriously, for anything that falls in the category of bedroom eyes, you should just think about Ladybug.“

Adrien rolled his eyes toward the ceiling. "Yeah. I’m sure lovesick and dumbstruck will be just what they need.” He sighed again. "I can’t wing this, Plagg. Between my luck and my total lack of experience, I’m sure to get less than desirable results. And you know what happens then,“ he finished gloomily.

"Your father is such a dick.”

Normally Adrien would take offense at his kwami’s blunt insults toward his father, but at the moment, Plagg had all the supporting evidence. He pulled out his phone to look at his schedule, scrolling through for photo-shoots that would happen after the interview hit the public. “I have just shy of two weeks to figure this out, and I’m not even sure where to start.”

“You know, that spaghetti-loving photographer seems to like you as a person,” Plagg started. "Maybe you should send him ask to see some of his pictures so you can get ideas. I bet he’d think you’re a real go-getter for working this out in advance.“

Plagg had a point. Vincent was decent, and would probably help him out because it would result in better shoots, too. "Yeah. But finding faces to crib is half the battle. Practicing them is a whole different mess.” He shook his head. He’d tried a little now and again, but it just didn’t work using a mirror. Looking to see if he’d nailed the expression, changed it just enough to be unsure.

“Have Nino help you out,” Plagg suggested.

Adrien straightened up in alarm. "Oh hell no. I don’t need anyone watching me while I figure out how I’m going to pull off sexy brooding face.“

"So borrow his camera, then,” Plagg huffed. "I bet he’s got one of those remote thingies. Cause we know what happens when I take pictures with your phone.“

Adrien shuddered. "Yeah. Let’s never do that again.”

* * *

“So you were a little vague about why you needed this.” Nino tucked the camera back in its bag, now that he’d gone over key settings. "You need any help with this project of yours?“

Though he’d been short on friends all his life, he’d gotten lucky in the last year and a half. "Er, it’s way too awkward to want help with, but I appreciate the offer.”

“Awkward?” Nino grinned. "What are you planning on doing with my camera, dude?“

"It’s a modeling exercise.” Adrien fidgeted with his collar. "I’m trying to expand my repertoire, and I can’t do that in the mirror.“

"Cool.” Nino nodded and handed over the camera bag. "So what brought this on? Your dad unhappy with your perfect face again?“ There was an edge to his voice. He didn’t bring it up often, but when he did, it was clear Nino had an appallingly solid understanding of the dysfunctional Agreste father/son relationship.

Adrien snorted. "Trying to avoid that, actually.” He rubbed at the back of his neck. It was probably better to just tell him. "Yesterday’s shoot made it clear that I’m going to be expected to provide a more adult range in the real near future.“ He shrugged. "And we know no one’s going to train me on that.”

“Like adult, or adult?” Nino asked, with emphasis and wiggling eyebrows on the last word.

Adrien mock-scowled at his friend. "The first, dude. I am not old enough to do porn legally. But thank you for the vote of confidence.“

Nino burst into laughter. "So are we talking half-naked underwear ads, because I’m not sure Mmm– some of our classmates could handle that.”

“Maybe?” He wasn’t sure what his father would sign him over for at this point. “It’s not like it matters what I’m wearing.”

“Or not wearing,” Nino managed to mutter between giggles.

Adrien crossed his arms over his chest and looked down at Nino with his best imitation of disappointed Gabriel face. "What are you, twelve?“

Nino shook his head, completely beyond words at this point.

"I’m a model and I do runway. Do you know what quick-changes are like back stage?” He waited for Nino to shake his head. "I don’t have my own changing room. God. That’d be decadent and elitist. If I’m lucky, I have a curtained cubicle, and it’s rare for the curtain to stay closed because I have assistants yanking off articles of clothing while thrusting others at me so I can change in thirty seconds or less.“

Nino laughed harder, bending forward and clinging to the railing to keep from falling over.

Adrien waited until he’d mostly calmed down before adding, "I’ve been seen in my underwear by a ridiculous number of people. I may be a lot of things, but body shy is not one of them.”

As expected, this revelation brought Nino to his knees, clutching his belly and gasping for mercy.

“Adrien, what did you do to my boyfriend?” Alya called, smiling as she approached them.

Nino waved her off, clearly in an attempt to prevent Adrien from saying anything else.

Adrien grinned. "I gave him a brief summary of the backstage mayhem of a fashion show.“

She glanced at Nino, still huddled on the step before looking back at Adrien. "And it’s hilarious?”

“Apparently.” Adrien shrugged. "Especially if you’re emotionally twelve and think that models furiously changing their clothes in front of a hundred other people is funny.“

"Staaahp!” Nino wheezed, yanking his headphones over his ears to try to block his hearing.

* * *

Adrien returned to campus from lunch to find Nino, Alya, and Marinette huddled together around a magazine.

“Holy hell.” Marinette’s whisper carried, and Adrien stopped short, staring at her in shock for a moment. Sweet quiet Marinette could be an inspirational fireball when she was fighting social injustice or leading the class during a crisis. But he didn’t think he’d ever heard her swear, even mildly.

“What’s so fascinating?” he asked. From the way they all jumped, they’d been too preoccupied to notice his approach.

Marinette tried to close the magazine, but Alya yanked it out of her grip and turned it out so Adrien could see the full page ad featuring one of his new expressions. He glanced at it, and smiled. His hours and hours of practice with Nino’s camera had paid off. After this particular shoot, his father made a passing comment that he was pleased with Adrien’s unexpected and previously unexplored scope. In Gabriel Agreste speak, it was the highest possible praise.

“What is this?” Alya demanded, her cheeks slightly flushed, though nowhere near as red as Marinette’s.

Adrien shrugged, unsure what the real question was. "New ad?“

Nino laughed. "Dude. Your experiment was definitely successful, if this came out of it.”

“Yeah,” Adrien agreed. "This is one of my favorites, but I have about a dozen that will probably work.“

"You have a fucking smolder, Agreste!” Alya shouted, thrusting the magazine into his hands and grabbing the front of his button down shirt with both hands to shake him. "When did our precious cinnamon roll develop a smolder?“

"Is that what that is?” Adrien asked, looking at it again. "I could just tell that it worked, not why.“

"It’s your eyes,” Marinette said, staring at the ad rather than his face. She could talk to him now, but sometimes she went all shy and stuttery again.

“What are you talking about?” Alya asked.

“There’s an intensity in your eyes that…” she chewed on her bottom lip. “It’s not in your usual photos. And the pose, the expression works because you have this aura of slight hesitance, with your chin tilted down just a bit. We aren’t getting your face full on from the front, but a little above, leading with your eyes. And you have this incredible intensity in your gaze. Without that, none of it would work.” She froze and glanced at the three of them staring at her. "Uh… I have no idea what I’m talking about.“

"Wow,” Adrien muttered, reevaluating the photo with her perspective. "Hey, Marinette, could you do that same thing with some other photos if I showed them to you?“

"Uh, what thing?” She fiddled with her purse strap.

“Analyze what works and why,” he clarified. "If I knew that, I bet I could rework some of them to be better.“

"You gonna need my camera again?” Nino asked.

“Maybe?” Adrien turned back to Marinette. "What do you say?“

**Author's Note:**

> My sole contribution to Adrien Week. I meant to do more, but my asthma ate my brain.  
> Prompt: modeling and body parts


End file.
